They may live side by side in Derry’s Waterside but people in Irish Street are more happier than their neighbours in the Top of the Hill, according to a recent survey.
Irish Street.
The survey, carried out by a group of academics at Queen’s University Belfast and the University of Sheffield, found more people in Top of the Hill were unemployed (9.73 per cent) than in Irish Street (6.32 per cent).
It’s the first of five reports which have been commissioned by the Office for the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM).
The survey was one of three “disadvantaged neighbourhoods” examined, the others being Sion Mills and the Short Strand and Lower Castlereagh areas of East Belfast.
Findings show more own their own houses in Irish Street (64.11 per cent owner occupation; 22.22 per cent social housing; and 11.54 per cent private rented) than in Top of the Hill (48.05 per cent owner occupation; 29.05 per cent social housing; and 18.16 per cent private rented).
Both areas also had a large percentage of residents who felt their neighbourhoods had improved over the last two years.
The report says: “The neighbourhoods with the most positive neighbourhood trajectories were the Londonderry/Derry case studies of Irish Street and Top of the Hill, where the numbers of residents who thought the neighbourhoods had improved outweighed those who thought it had deteriorated,” the report says.
Irish Street also had the second highest number of residents who were satisfied with their estate as a place to live.
“The neighbourhoods with the highest satisfaction levels were Sion Mills and Irish Street where 94 and 93 per cent respectively of residents were satisfied.”
When it comes to happiness and life satisfaction, however, the two Waterside neighbourhoods united by geography couldn’t be more divided.
“Happiness levels fluctuated by area. They were highest in Irish Street, where 76 per cent of respondents recorded a score of at least seven, and lowest in Top of the Hill, where 61 per cent responded in this way.”
People living in Irish Street were the most satisfied with their lives, whilst their near neighbours down the street at Top of the Hill were the least satisfied of all the areas surveyed.
“Satisfaction rates varied markedly across the disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Residents in Irish Street were most likely to report a ‘medium’ or ‘high’ satisfaction ranking, with 83 per cent responding in this way,” the researchers found.
The survey shows the Top of the Hill has a population of 1,843 in 716 households while 476 people live in 234 in Irish Street.
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